Tweet
ABILENE - Women's NIT organizers Thursday formally announced that Abilene Christian has been selected as its automatic qualifier from the Southland Conference. This will be the Wildcats' first-ever appearance in WNIT and it comes only three years into their NCAA DI transition.
The WNIT wrote in an email earlier today that, "even if the Wildcats (25-3, 16-1 Southland) should tie Central Arkansas (25-3, 15-2 Southland) for the regular-season title, ACU has the tiebreaker and therefore the automatic qualifier berth."
The Wildcats defeated the Sugar Bears 61-49 in Conway, Ark., to begin league play on Jan. 2 as part of a season-best 14-game winning streak. UCA rebounded from that loss with a nine-game winning streak and has since been on the Wildcats' heels with its only other defeat coming against Northwestern State, 60-56, on Feb. 10.
Reaching the WNIT has been a season-long goal for head coach Julie Goodenough and her team, but they still desire to win the conference title outright with a victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Tip time for the rematch between the Islanders and Wildcats is Saturday at 2 p.m.
ACU won the first meeting in Corpus Christi on Feb. 17, 71-65.
In their 45-year history, the Wildcats have competed in a wide variety of postseason championships ranging from the Texas AIWA State Tournament to the NCAA DII South Central Regional and the NCAA DII National Tournament. ACU was part of 12 DII regional brackets from 1985 to 2013 and made its lone national appearance in 1996, when the Wildcats finished third with an overall record of 31-2 (.939).
But this upcoming WNIT appearance has seemingly trumped all others as it again proves the Wildcats under Goodenough were more than ready to make the jump from DII to DI Athletics. And close to no one, except those nearest to the program, ever thought the Wildcats would reach the country's No. 2 annual postseason tournament so soon after starting the DI transition - especially those who picked ACU to place ninth in the Southland Conference preseason poll.
The Wildcats are only the second announced WNIT automatic qualifier along with Ohio Valley regular season champion UT Martin (21-9). However, ACU won't know its WNIT opponent, time, date or location until very late on selection night, which is Monday, March 14.
The bracket will be posted following the NCAA's selection show at WomensNIT.com, and first-round games will start as early as Wednesday, March 16.
More...
The WNIT wrote in an email earlier today that, "even if the Wildcats (25-3, 16-1 Southland) should tie Central Arkansas (25-3, 15-2 Southland) for the regular-season title, ACU has the tiebreaker and therefore the automatic qualifier berth."
The Wildcats defeated the Sugar Bears 61-49 in Conway, Ark., to begin league play on Jan. 2 as part of a season-best 14-game winning streak. UCA rebounded from that loss with a nine-game winning streak and has since been on the Wildcats' heels with its only other defeat coming against Northwestern State, 60-56, on Feb. 10.
Reaching the WNIT has been a season-long goal for head coach Julie Goodenough and her team, but they still desire to win the conference title outright with a victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Tip time for the rematch between the Islanders and Wildcats is Saturday at 2 p.m.
ACU won the first meeting in Corpus Christi on Feb. 17, 71-65.
In their 45-year history, the Wildcats have competed in a wide variety of postseason championships ranging from the Texas AIWA State Tournament to the NCAA DII South Central Regional and the NCAA DII National Tournament. ACU was part of 12 DII regional brackets from 1985 to 2013 and made its lone national appearance in 1996, when the Wildcats finished third with an overall record of 31-2 (.939).
But this upcoming WNIT appearance has seemingly trumped all others as it again proves the Wildcats under Goodenough were more than ready to make the jump from DII to DI Athletics. And close to no one, except those nearest to the program, ever thought the Wildcats would reach the country's No. 2 annual postseason tournament so soon after starting the DI transition - especially those who picked ACU to place ninth in the Southland Conference preseason poll.
The Wildcats are only the second announced WNIT automatic qualifier along with Ohio Valley regular season champion UT Martin (21-9). However, ACU won't know its WNIT opponent, time, date or location until very late on selection night, which is Monday, March 14.
The bracket will be posted following the NCAA's selection show at WomensNIT.com, and first-round games will start as early as Wednesday, March 16.
More...